Monthly Archives: March 2012

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy’s Matthew Levitt recently testified before Congress about possible Hezbollah terrorist attacks inside the US. A link to a summary of his testimony is provided below.

Here are a few particularly salient points from Levitt’s remarks:

• “FBI investigations to date continue to indicate that many Hizballah subjects based in the United States have the capability to attempt terrorist attacks here” should they so desire.

• there is reason for concern that Hizballah could decide to carry out attacks on U.S. soil…

• In light of Hizballah’s perception that the United States is actively targeting it and its allies, Washington should consider how the group might pursue an attack in the homeland. There are four main ways in which Hizballah could use passive sympathizers and/or active networks to support such an operation:

Some 5,000 people have been killed in that conflict since 2004. The aim of the Jihadists is largely the same as that of Jihadist insurgents everywhere: the establishment of an Islamic state ruled by Shariah law.

Before we weigh in on the latest atrocity committed by the Jihadists in southern Thailand, new readers can familiarize themselves with the conflict by checking out the numerous posts we’ve dedicated to this theater in the global Islamic insurgency:

The Jihad in southern Thailand took a major turn for the worse overnight when the Jihadists detonated 3 car bombs and 1 motorcycle bomb, killing 14 and wounding 340.

The number of killed and wounded have climbed throughout the day since the initial reports came in this morning.

The AP first reported 8 dead and 68 wounded. A couple of hours later CNN reported 10 dead and 100 wounded. Then the AP reported 14 dead and 340 wounded. This indicates that Western news agencies have no one near the scene and are dependent on reports from stringers and local news agencies.

That is rather typical of the coverage of this conflict has received all along. No one has really paid attention. The so-called mainstream media has largely ignored the conflict and wants to believe that all such conflicts are strictly born of local issues. The idea of a global Islamic insurgency goes squarely against the narrative that the media rolls out on such conflicts as the ones raging in Thailand, the Philippines, Somalia, Nigeria and elsewhere.

At any rate, this latest series of bomb attacks represents a serious escalation of the violence. This is by far the largest casualty count for an attack by the Jihadists in Thailand and the attack is by far the most planned out and orchestrated.

This could very well indicate the infusion of foreign funding, know-how, training or even Jihadis into southern Thailand.

Sites of terrorist attacks in Southern Thailand

The bombs were detonated in shopping and dining areas frequented by tourists in Yala city. The first bomb was followed by a detonation designed to inflict casualties on samaritans, onlookers and first responders at the same site. This is a common tactic used by Jihadists around the globe. By taking out first responders, any subsequent blast makes authorities appear incompetent or helpless to protect or render aid to victims.

Scene of car bomb attack in Yala City, Thailand

Another image of the Yala City car bomb attack

Sure enough, while the media was still reporting on the “twin blasts” in Thailand, a third blast occurred in the basement parking lot of a high-rise hotel (the Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel) in the nearby city of Hat Yai. At about the same time, a motorcycle bomb was detonated wounding a police officer.

Cell phone camera image of bombing of Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel in Hat Yai, Thailand. The hotel is the tallest building in the area, seen at far left.

Smoke victims at scene of Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel bombing in Thailand

This was clearly a coordinated, planned assault designed to instill fear in the population, make the Jihadis appear more formidable than they have been seen previously and cause chaos.

It is also probable that the attack failed in an apparent key goal. The fact that a car bomb was detonated in the basement of a high rise building is very reminiscent of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. That attack was designed to bring the twin towers down and most of the casualties it ended up causing were due to smoke inhalation. The same is evidently true of this attack in Thailand.

It is almost certain that the Jihadis meant to bring that building in Thailand down.

This was meant to be Thailand’s September 11th: a coordinated series of attacks with massive casualties. It is tragic that innocent people lost their lives and were injured, but it is likely that the attacks fell short of their goals and caused fewer casualties than they were intended to inflict.

Like this:

We have always been skeptical that Osama Bin Laden maintained operational control over much of Al Qaeda while he was on the run, dodging US forces.

When US Special Operations forces caught up with Bin Laden and killed him in a compound in Pakistan, it was initially assumed, or at least reported, that he had been laid up there for almost the entire time he was on the run.

It was also widely reported that because Bin Laden was in a secure location for so long, he likely maintained operational control over Al Qaeda globally. That simply did not ring true to us then and it doesn’t now that it has been revealed that Bin Laden in fact lived a vagabond life, moving to five safe houses in widely separated parts of Afghanistan and then Pakistan.

The meme that Bin Laden maintained operational control over Al Qaeda while he was evading US forces was touted to essentially turn the killing of the terrorist leader into an “end-game” event in the so-called “war on terror.”

The Left in particular has promoted that narrative, but some neo-isolationists on the right have subscribed to it as well.

We buy into that rubbish at our peril. Assuming that the Jihadists will end their war against the West in general, and the US in particular, because the SEALs killed Bin Laden is irresponsible.

It defies belief that Bin Laden could possibly have maintained operational control over Al Qaeda given the conditions which he was forced to endure post 9/11.

Al Qaeda has become decentralized and its followers and admirers around the world, such as Mohammed Merah in France, will continue to act with brutal violence. Meanwhile, Al Qaeda “affiliates” continue to be active in Nigeria, Yemen, Somalia, Syria, Libya, Mali and Niger to name a few.

The death of Bin Laden at the hands of US Navy SEALs was a great thing. But to assign “victory” to that single act would in fact be to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Too few high ranking and former high ranking officials are willing to speak out like this.

Woolsey knows about the wire tap evidence tying CAIR’s leadership to HAMAS. And of course no fewer than four CAIR officers and employees have been incarcerated in federal prison on a variety of charges, including terrorism.

It’s time for the media and the Left in America to wake up to CAIR’s nefarious activities and ideology. This especially goes for the law enforcement “leadership” in Los Angeles…

Jihad has returned to France.

In the past 10 days a Muslim gunman killed and wounded French soldiers, schoolchildren and other innocent civilians in cowardly attacks. The terrorist, Mohammed Merah, was killed in excellent work by France’s GIGN-RAID personnel. It is worth mentioning that the media bent over backwards to avoid labeling these attacks Jihadist terrorism. In the early days of this episode, the media, notably CNN, actually labeled the shooter a “serial killer.” A serial killer that targets soldiers and Jewish children??? Who do the media think they’re fooling?

Below is a brief review of the events as reported in international media.

Al-Qaeda inspired gunman in Toulouse siege is dead

Short video here. Note one inaccuracy in report that states that the terrorist was found dead and it was not determined whether he killed himself or was shot. Other footage reveals definitively that he was shot while trying to leap from the balcony of his apartment…

The New Nazis

French gunman had no Al Qaeda connection, says official

The media’s profound confusion continues. Somehow they think we can all find comfort if a Jihadist terrorist is found to not be a card-carrying member of Al Qaeda. The opposite may be true. It may be MORE dangerous to have Jihadi individuals and cells operating in the West who have merely been “inspired” by Al Qaeda. Still, in this case, it appears from reports elsewhere that Merah was a known Jihadi who did indeed spend time in Afghanistan and Pakistan as recently as 2010…

The last 13 seconds of Mohammed Merah’s life:

Here is a story of how French authorities caught up with Merah. It is unfortunate that they have revealed these details as the Jihadis will learn from this and will be unlikely to repeat such mistakes…

In the wake of the attacks in France, Europol’s chief is warning of a new wave of Jihad in Europe. He correctly points out that “inspired Jihadis” or “Lone Wolves” acting independently of any centralized command authority after receiving training present a whole set of challenges of their own. For instance, it’s very difficult to infiltrate a movement made up of such people, much more difficult than running counterintelligence operations against a Baader-Meinhoff gang or Red Brigades, or even the Provo IRA, such as were prevalent in the terrorist era of the 1980s…

Europe faces new terrorism threat from extremists acting alone as in France’s attacks

Finally, here is a hard-hitting editorial that justifiably lambasts the media for its clear contortions to avoid admitting that the attacks in Toulouse were most likely the work of a Jihadi. The Western media speculated openly that the gunman must have been a Neo-Nazi or perhaps a “serial killer.” EVERYONE else in the world knew the truth. Only one class of barbarian targets soldiers and Jewish children…We wish we could say that we are hopeful that the media has learned a lesson from all this, but we know better…